Grand Union
The Grand Union (formerly known as the Union) is an empire, the larger of two nations on the continent of Unidas on Aurisen. It is the main setting for Points & Pages. Originally a loose collection of tribal villages of certain species, the Grand Union eventually raised a standing army called the World Army to resolve diplomatic affairs, protect its trade routes from banditry, and protect themselves from the encroachment of the neighboring province of Elruna in the Far West. Background The Union was created after the Return of the Forgotten, a war in which the forest-dwelling species rose up and killed the dominant species at the time, the Dragons. These forest-dwelling species were all once favored by the Three Goddesses until the Dragons captured their attention. However, the Goddesses vanished one day and the Dragons turned on each other in rage, resulting in mass casualties. Realizing the Goddesses had disappeared, the forest-dwelling species saw their chance to rid themselves of the dominant Dragons whose population had diminished from civil war. Six species banded together and wiped out the remaining Dragon population: * The Apes, who would become the Humans * The Clawed Beasts, who would become the Kobolds and Manticores * The Hooved Beasts, who would become the Ouroks * The Winged Insects, who would become the Fae * The Lizards, who would become the Naga * The Birds, who would become the Avalids After their victory, the warleaders of each species negotiated the breakup of their newly lands into regions. Initially the leaders wanted each species to have a region to call their own. Arguments started to break out over claims to homeland, and the leaders realized that giving a region to a species would only lead to more conflict in the future. They decided to determine regions geographically and allowed free movement between them to promote peace between the species. At first, most villages continued to comprise of mostly one species and hesitated to accept members of other species into their society. Ironically, the first interspecies village was a bandit encampment that would accept all newcomers that were willing to fight for their leader. This group of bandits went on to become incredibly successful with the full range of abilities that every species possessed at their disposal, even becoming strong enough to organize into an army to capture the capital of the Union, Garrison. They adopted the name of the Syndicate and systematically collected tribute from villages all across the Union. Eventually, Garet Crimson grew tired of paying tribute to the Syndicate and escaped to the Far West where he met a Fae Seer named Pius. Pius took Garet to the ancient capital of Elruna (also named Elruna) where he would be safe for the rest of his life. Garet told Pius that he didn't intend to hide forever and wanted to learn how Elruna was able to defend itself so well. Pius explained that Elruna relied on all of its citizens of various species to do their duty for the sake of their homeland. Inspired, Garet returned to the Union with Pius to unite the small villages to fight off the Syndicate. The World Army was established out of an alliance of various tribes in the Southern, Northern, and South Central regions. The World Army reclaimed the capital city of Garrison and the Syndicate collapsed shortly after. The Union was reborn as the Grand Union in honor of the strength of their unity. The regional leaders decided that a Union Parliament should be established with the Garet, the General-Commander, as the head of state. To ensure his position would not be abused in the future, Garet established a republic, giving a vote to each regional leader as well as one to himself. Garet also founded the Brotherhood and made Pius its head priest, giving him a vote as well. For several centuries after that, the World Army remained active as patrols to subdue any remaining bandits that would plunder the trade routes. Being a soldier was a position of high esteem, and many Union citizens wished to become one. However, peaceful times made upkeep of the World Army unmanageable, and the prestige of being a soldier began to wear off. This decline was further exacerbated by the abuses of authority, as soldiers began accepting bribes from wealthy nobles and barons to serve their interests instead of the Union's. Fearing the collapse of the World Army, the Union Parliament imposed a tax on each region for protection, further driving a rift between the World Army and Union citizens. Bandits began appearing again as the ranks of the World Army soldiers became filled with crooks and cowards, while the mercenary profession resurfaced as a more reliable form of protection. As the citizens began to call for the dissolution of the World Army, Union Parliament attempted to provoke Elruna into a war to justify the existence of the World Army. To their dismay, Elruna was more than willing to comply and invaded the Grand Union's Southern region, annexing Garet's homeland of the Rainbow Steppes. The Elrunian invasion, though successful in justifying the preservation of the World Army, was also a source of national embarrassment for the Union Parliament. People began to call for a strong leader who will protect them from the Elrunians. To rally the people's patriotism, Union Parliament appointed a descendant of the Crimson family as the next General-Commander, Wolf Crimson. However, Sky Crimson, Wolf's younger brother, believed that he was more deserving of the position and stole the Coronation Swords before running away from home. Shortly after in the streets of a faraway town, Sky was attacked and robbed by two common thugs, leaving the location of the Coronation Swords unknown. Knowing this would cause further embarrassment, the Crimson family erased all records of Sky Crimson from their records and proceeded to have Wolf crowned as General-Commander. Wolf proved to be an even more incompetent leader than his predecessor, obstructing Parliament at every turn. Although he strengthened their borders, Wolf never took any interest in taking back the Rainbow Steppes and even negotiated a ceasefire with Elruna. His actions greatly angered both Parliament and the people and resistance movements began to pop up across the Union. Despite the opposition, Wolf Crimson held command of the military and the Brotherhood remained faithful to Wolf. Still, the people of the Grand Union knew that Wolf Crimson would eventually fall and braced themselves for the impending disaster, which leads to the events of Points & Pages. Regions Incorporated These regions are inhabited and is administered by the Grand Union, sorted in order by population: * Garrison, the Capital * Southern * South Central * Northern * Southeastern * Northeast * Autonomous Kobold Region Unincorporated These regions are generally uninhabited and are not administered by the Grand Union, though the Grand Union lays claim to them: * Northern Peninsula * The Central Mountains * The Barrens